Fruits of the Flesh - Compromise

This is the fourth installment in the series "Fruits of the Flesh". Here is the original post.

The third Fruit of the Spirit is Peace. The third Fruit of the Flesh is Compromise.

I was taking a stroll around downtown Springfield a few months ago when I ran across a party of anti-war protesters on Park Central Square. I didn't want to have a debate or an argument, but I did feel like striking up some conversation.

One demonstrator held up a sign that said "War is Not the Answer". I don't remember exactly how the discussion went, but I do remember my own line of reasoning, as follows:

-War is not initiated by an aggressor. If one party invades another, and they are unchallenged, war does not result. The result is occupation.

-War is initiated when a threatened party takes up arms to defend itself.

-So War is actually the result of self-defense. However...

-If the aggressor is unchallenged, they are guilty of invasion. If they are challenged, they are guilty of starting a war. In neither case is the invaded party responsible for the consequences of violence, so long as they defend themselves honorably.

My point was, it's easy to say "War is Not the Answer", but what is the question? Is the question, "How can a nation establish true and lasting peace?" or is it "How do we avoid conflict and violence?" To get the right answer, you have to ask the right question.

The Fruits of the Flesh are not bad things in and of themselves. If that were the case, then the worldly counterpart to Peace would be War. But our society does not worship War, or even violence, by and large. Many of us seek peace, stability and justice, but when we don't care to humble ourselves, and trust Jesus, we seek out our own methods. And when attempting to achieve Peace, our most common method is Compromise.

Peace by any other means requires an incredible amount of power. If a nation believes they themselves possess enough power to achieve Peace, they will attempt to do so with threats. If their threats are ignored, they assume they could vanquish their foe quickly, and return to their state of Peace. Or take for example the Cold War. Two mighty nations were so afraid of each other that the result was and uneasy Peace.

But failing a reckless confidence in our own power, we regularly resort to Compromise to achieve Peace. You middle children know exactly what I'm talking about. You are the go-betweens, the Peace-makers. You mediate in difficult situations to make sure everybody gets along. And this is good. Like I said, all the Fruits of the Flesh are good in one way or another.

There is nothing wrong with doubting our own power. We should, in fact. But if we see Compromise as our only path to Peace, we are also doubting the power of God. If Israel believes they can achieve a peaceful relationship with the Palestinians by giving up land, they are doubting the power and promise of God. And if you, as an individual, are trying to gain Peace of mind by relying upon an exchange of favors, an appeasement of temper, and a watering down of the truth, you are also doubting the power and promise of God.

Jesus said "My Peace I give to you." Any kind of Peace we strive for, apart from that, is like a bowl of plastic fruit.

Fruits of the Flesh - Happiness

This is the third installment in the series "Fruits of the Flesh". Here is the original post.

The second Fruit of the Spirit is Joy. The second Fruit of the Flesh is Happiness.

I wrote at some length about Love vs. Romance, but for Joy vs. Happiness I'll be brief.

One response to the original post was about the denigration of the word "happiness", and the fact that the Greek and Hebrew words most often translated "blessed" in the Scriptures are just as accurately translated "happy". Such as in the Psalm 1:1 "Happy is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked," or Matthew 5:7, "Happy are the merciful."

The most common approach to Joy vs. Happiness is that Joy is deep and resilient, whereas Happiness is temporary and circumstantial. I have no qualms about that view. But is there a chance we're giving Happiness the short-shrift?

One of the primary post-modern criticisms of Christianity attacks the naive, happy-clappy, see-no-evil disposition. It bothers me, too. But is happiness the culprit, or the victim here? It would be a funny thing to translate Matthew 5:4, "Happy are those who mourn". Mourning people aren't happy, they're sad.

The second fruit of the flesh is a Happiness that is sought in and of itself. But much like Romance, and the other Fruits of the Flesh, Happiness needs to be a by-product of the Spirit, and becomes an evil thing when it is sought directly. Joy, on the contrary, can be sought directly, because we cannot have it without a whole-hearted trust in God. Happiness is an emotion, but Joy is a commitment.

And no matter what emotions joy may lead us through in this life, happy is the one who joyfully perseveres to the end, where happiness is not the exception, but the rule.

Fruits of the Flesh - Romance

Yesterday I lined up the world's counterfeit fruits in the post "Fruits of the Flesh." Now I'm going to hit each one briefly, for a little explanation.

The first Fruit of the Spirit is Love. The first Fruit of the Flesh is Romance.

The Fruits of the Flesh are not, inherently, bad. The only people I know who would call Romance bad are the unromantic. Romance, to them, is what gives the Romeos and Don Juans an unfair advantage. But apart from them, most of us can agree that Romance is a good thing, especially within marriage.

But here's the kicker. God says, "Love." The world says "Fall in love." That's what Romance is: Falling in love. It's not something you have any control over... you're a victim. It just happens. So you get swept off your feet, and carried along by a sweet summer breeze.

And it's only logical that if you don't have any control over the beginning of something, you won't have any control over the end, either. Falling out of love. Breaking up. Divorce. Romance, like money, is a great servant and a terrible master.

One of the great tragedies of the English language is the multi-tasking it often is required to do. I'm not going to ask you to stop saying how much you love Snow, or Motorcycles, or Burger King. But when you talk about loving people, you've got to switch into another gear. DC Talk wrote a hip-hop ditty called "Luv is a Verb" which was cheesy, but right on target.

If Love is a verb, it's not something you can "fall into". It's a bull you take by the horns. And if it's all mushy and emotional then guys will get really quiet when they say "I love you" to each other, and have to add the word "dude" or "man" or "bro".

So I'm gonna finish with a word to the men. If there's anything masculine out there, it's action. Decisive, Aggressive Action. No wonder we've shrunk back from loving each other... our society equates it with sex, sunsets and satin sheets. And those things have their place. But love is a thing of action! It is a thing of reckless sacrifice and relentless devotion. It means making a decision and never, ever swerving from it. Do you think you're stubborn and tough? Make a pact with God right now (or renew the one you already have) to never leave your wife... legally, physically, sexually, mentally... period. Make a pact to never abuse her, or your kids. Never in a million years. Make a pact to work like an ox to provide them everything they need. Make a pact to shut the hell up when they just need you to listen.

Because Love is a verb... bro.

Fruits of the Flesh

For the fruit of the flesh is:

Romance, Happiness, Compromise, Coolness, Friendliness, Social Awareness, Security, and Autonomy

Let's see them side by side:

SPIRIT--------FLESH
Love----------Romance
Joy-----------Happiness
Peace---------Compromise
Patience------Coolness
Kindness------Friendliness
Goodness------Social Awareness
Faithfulness--Security
Self-Control--Autonomy

Each fruit of the flesh is a counterfeit. It can be easy to see them as worthy of our effort, or even as equivalent to what the Spirit desires. I will explain the difference between the left column and the right in future posts.